1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to fire escapes, and in particular to the type of fire escape which can be mounted adjacent a window and used by a person to descend by cable in a safe manner.
2. Prior Art
Of the many and varied types of emergency fire escapes, one of the types that could be most practical which is rarely seen, are the types which can be suspended from the individual windows or doors of a building and which can be operated to allow escapees to descend by cable. To this end, certain escape devices have been made which embody a drum reel on which a cable is wound and which can be mounted adjacent a door or window of a building and which also has a governing system arranged to govern rotation of the reel as the cable is paid out so that an escapee is lowered safely to the ground and which can then be operated to reel in the extended cable for use by somebody else.
One of the problems associated with these types of escape devices is that they are quite often left outside the buildings after use and working components thereof are therefore subject to rust and the like which can render them unsafe. Also they must be relatively light so that they can be handled easily by people in emergency situations. Escape devices of this type of prior art have usually embodied a heavy protective casing in which the reel and the governing components are mounted and which is strong enough to withstand without deformation lateral of forces generated by governor components. Such devices are difficult to handle in emergency situations.